Leslie Gilbert Elman

Sauna at the Source in Finland
by Leslie Gilbert Elman
From Healing Lifestyles & Spas (March/​April 2003)
© 2003 Leslie Gilbert Elman - may not be reprinted without permission

It’s Ladies’ Day at the Finnish Sauna Society. I’m settled inside a traditional Finnish smoke sauna, with walls charred black from wood smoke. Two women chat quietly in Finnish, a language beyond my comprehension. Far from being distracting, their subdued tones create a comforting hum in the dark, dark room. I close my eyes and feel the sweat beading on my forehead.

The air temperature is about 100° C. That is 212° F: the boiling point. If I were a kettle of water, you could pour me out to make tea.

Normally, the Finnish Sauna Society is a members-only club, but exceptions are made for foreign visitors who telephone in advance. The women here know I’m a stranger, but it doesn’t seem to bother them. Maybe this has something to do with the fact that we’re all stark naked (seated on towels to keep things sanitary). All defenses are down.

They smile and nod, asking with a gesture whether I mind if they toss a ladleful of water from the wooden sauna bucket onto the hot sauna rocks. With a casual wave I say it’s just fine with me. The water is tossed. The rocks sizzle and steam. We inhale and exhale in unison, drifting back into our individual reveries. Through the long narrow window in the sauna I can watch the sea that surrounds this island - Lauttasaari, about 15 minutes from downtown Helsinki.

Taking my cues from the other women, I sit in the sauna for about 15 minutes, then step outside. My new friend Sinikka leads the way toward the second part of the traditional Finnish sauna experience - the part that has me a little nervous...

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